The Journey Towards Having More FUN Surfing

A vital lesson I've been trying to teach my kids is to avoid saying "no" to experiences, especially if those experiences have the potential to help you grow. That growth mindset is critical to living life to it's fullest.

Ideally, there is no guarantee of a good time when saying "yes" to those experiences. That is where the unknown plays a fun role in one's personal growth. 

But at Surf Ranch, it's pretty much a guarantee of a good time. So when my contact reached out and said there was a last minute cancellation and could I fill the day, I said, "yes", and then my blood pressure went through the roof with no guarantee I would fill it. 

I was given two and a half weeks. 

Oops, maybe I made a mistake. 

Well, if that's the case, so be it. But let's give it a try anyways. 

The call went out to Alumni. Last minute day trip to Surf Ranch. Small group. Lots of fun. Any takers? 

"Sounds amazing, but I'm gone that day."

"Wish I had a bit more time -...

During the Waco Beginner's Trip last August, I had the opportunity to try out one of their new Barrel waves. Just prior to that, they released an amazing set of videos showing that same wave looking like an easy takeoff, setup, and ride through to the end. 

I should have known better. 

The surfing world is very good at marketing. And the general formula is - get a pro to rip on video or in a photo, and then watch as we all buy what they are selling. 

Like I said, I should have known better. The initial video of the pro surfer taking off on said wave barreling wave profile looked incredibly easy. I promoted it as a great way to learn barrel riding - a warm up to Surf Ranch - take your barrel riding to the next level. 

Oops. That's really all I can say. Because when I tried this new wave profile in August during the Beginner trip (with advanced to expert surfers), I realized the reality of this wave. It was not an easy takeoff, nor an easy set up, and no,...

Each time we venture to our private island in Baja for a week of surf coaching, we experience something different surf-wise. We are typically blessed with one to two days of larger and more powerful swell, accompanied by fun moderate swell the rest of the week. This is a perfect formula for coaching both from a paddling and takeoff point of view, but also for Barry to coach surf technique and other skills while riding. The ocean normally gives us a small taste of what these surf spots could provide without overwhelming anyone in the group.

This year, we are thankful we got moderate swell. There was less of a taste of the more powerful stuff than in trips past, but the ocean provided waves every day still. I frequently surfed four to five sessions throughout the day, with the least frequent two sessions on the smallest and softest day of the week.

In other words, no matter what the forecast had looked like in years past and did look like leading into this year’s week there,...

The Epiphany

A few years ago, I was surfing at Waco Surf with a few clients and friends. We bought a few private sessions and had supplemented the trip with some public sessions. Let’s just say, this was an advanced surf group. We weren’t really looking at any waves below the intermediate level to surf or try out.

In the middle of our trip, in the middle of the day, I was sipping on a tea and munching on a breakfast sandwich. Another group of surfers were starting up their session and I looked up (as most surfers do) when the waves started rolling through.

However, when I glanced up at the first wave, it wasn’t breaking in the typical place in the basin, nor was it as fast, nor as tall. But the surfer delicately paddled in, got to their feet and rode beautifully in the pocket until the wave started to hit an inside section where it started to stand up nicely as the surfer walked to the nose and back.

What the?!?

Waco has a longboard wave? For some reason at this...

I know, I know. You can go to Indo for a week with what it costs to go to Surf Ranch for a day and a half. Or Fiji, or Mex, or fill in the blank surf location.

And you know, you’re right. Spot on. 100% correct.

But would it be an apples-to-apples comparison on what you get?

Maybe. Maybe not.

Every year I say to myself, I’m not doing Surf Ranch again. And yet, each year I go again, and again. Why?

I just can’t convince myself otherwise.

Contrary to what some people may think, I buy a spot just like everyone else. So it hits my wallet just like it hits yours. And I have to go through the money justification just like you.

So here’s my thought process on it. Agree or disagree, but I figured I would share for the fun of it.

GOAL OF TRIP

First, we need to set a baseline on what is included in each trip, and also level set what my goal of the trip is. The reason why the second parameter is important is because I may very well choose to go on a trip to Indo, or...

Much like an automobile, our surfing needs a tune-up each year. Unlike our cars, a surfing tune-up, as I am defining it, doesn’t involve repair. A surfing tune-up is about building neural pathways (new or renewed) so when an opportunity presents itself in the ocean, our brain automatically moves the body parts it needs to in order to achieve the maneuver we sought.

As I’ve mentioned in past articles, Lakeside Surf Rail Surfing Coaching Trip with Barry Green and

From a Down the Line to a Carving Surfer … in 3 Days, the learning curve at Lakeside is steeper than other wavepools. Every wavepool, every surf break in fact, has a learning curve our brain needs to go through in order to get to a stage where we are just surfing (and therefore progressing). Sometimes the learning curve is learning the takeoff, when the wave stands up, when the wave backs off, or simply how the water is moving as we ride the wave. Because Lakeside is so foreign for our brains, it takes a...

[highlights video below]

“This is the last year I will run this,” is always what I say a few weeks before each Kelly Slater Surf Ranch trip. The amount of financial, logistical, and anticipatory stress I endure would put any cardiologist on call.

And yet, each year, I am utterly blown away with the feeling of joy and fulfillment the aftermath brings.

Simply looking at the happiness on the faces of the participants is enough to make me do it all over again.

BEST STATS to DATE

On top of seeing their ecstatic faces after each wave, it seems the pre-trip training has proved successful once again (and was so close to the 90% benchmark I set as a goal each year).

Not only did this group register the highest Priority takeoff success rate at 88%, but they improved immensely in both the Pro and Poach takeoff zones (80% and 85% respectively).

AND, of the participants on this year’s trip, only five surfers had previously taken the pre-trip Take Off Training and...

Edward Thorndike is one of the godfathers of motor learning. He lived in the late 1800s into the early to mid 1900s and studied a variety of different psychological topics.

From his research, I’ve used several key takeaways in adult learning, and have witnessed what I like to call the “learning click”. This is in reference to a client’s body and brain finally “clicking” on what we are working on.

I see the click in the body language and confidence of movement, and whenever I see it, I get this fire of joy deep in my belly. It feels like surfing my first wave all over again. It’s the ah-ha moment and I can visually see clients go through this often when we work on paddling technique together.

On our trip to Lakeside Surf last summer, I got to witness it with a surfer riding the wave. It wasn’t a paddling technique clicking, but rather a surf technique clicking. And it was crazy for me to witness that in the moment (actually I witnessed...

Lakeside Surf delivers again with a truly one-of-a-kind surf trip. Traveling inland, deep in the state of Washington, felt strange, as it has the last two times we've gone there to surf. We traveled with boards between four and a half and five and a half feet, with volumes 20-40% lower than most people ride. [see video at the end of the article]

But that's the thing. There's no need for length or volume when the wave provides you all the speed you want. 

This environment gives the surfer the most unique coaching experience for rail surfing. The same wave, the same section, repeatable, without paddling or taking off. 

Sounds too good to be true?

There's always a catch. 

As we disclosed in the last Lakeside trip blog post - From a Down the Line to a Carving Surfer … in 3 Days - there is a bit of a learning curve before you can begin unlocking the wonders of rail surfing. 

Of the wave pools Barry and I have visited, Lakeside has the steepest learning...

A somewhat last minute strike mission to Waco Surf led to some tired bodies. Not so much in the arms and shoulders, but the entire body, because we were surfing a tremendous amount of waves.

Our hearty crew of five started with a few public sessions to get warmed up and wash off the air travel. After that we jumped into our first of three private sessions the next morning, calling up a wave profile that provided a little more time in between waves within each set.

This was the first test.

We still got a ton of waves, and I was a bit nervous about what was to come. I had to stop myself for a moment though – I was nervous about our group having too many waves (and hence waves going unridden)! What a problem to have.

After that first private, we felt we had a good plan with the wave profile we selected, especially since the next day we’ll be getting one more surfer in our group. Yes, we each had a ton of waves because even with that wave profile, there were three...